Kategoria BISAC: Language Arts & Disciplines >> Library & Information Science - General

The problem of purpose in the title is the 130-year debate within the library community over the proper place for the library in society. Chapters discuss roles for public libraries from the founding of the Boston Public Library with its clear educational purpose through attempts at rational planning for library roles in the 1980s. The controversy about the place of popular fiction in American libraries in the late 19th century; the militant outreach efforts during the early decades of the 20th century; the adult education phase during the 1920s to 1940s; and the library as an information...

Research does not have to mean getting buried in statistics, claims Constance Mellon, and in this unique study she describes an approach to applying the naturalistic inquiry of anthropology and sociology to the field of information science. Drawing on the author's experience in the design of instruction, the book outlines a humanistic and relevant method of naturalistic research whose aim is understanding rather than prediction. Unlike other books on the topic, here the method is directed specifically toward librarianship and its particular needs and problems, and made clear through a...

The analysis of the management activities and effectiveness of the academic library director in Joanne Euster's "The Academic Library Director" is a fine companion to Rook's work on motivation. Indeed Euster even identifies several key leadership types that characterize certain library directors. Her analyses of those types, and in particular her witty mottoes for each, are a delight. . . . Euster's work is, though, a serious one that is worth serious attention. It is a solid analytical study of how academic library directors operate and what impact they may have on the operation and...

"The Alienated Llibrarian" is a thoughtful, thorough analysis of the proletarianization of professional work throughout history. . . . What this book does is to present a penetrating investigation of the problem, draw thoughtful conclusions and suggest coping strategies. "Collection Management"

This excellent book should attract a wide audience including professional librarians, library school faculty and students, library administrators, and the consulting community. It is highly recommended. Information Processing & Management Nauratil's] analysis does help us gain an understanding...

Pungitore's timely and important exploration of many of the critical issues affecting public libraries renders a significant service to public library decision makers. By exploring current national trends and views of advocates and detractors concerning the various issues discussed, the author provides assistance to public librarians who, faced with dilemmas created by social, cultural, economic, and technological change' must make many difficult choices that often involve compromise and accommodation'. . . . In addition to assisting public librarians and board members, themany issues...

Gerard McCabe's "Operations Handbook for the Small Academic Library" fills a real need. It should be of substantial benefit to many librarians working in such settings. The editor has done a good job of identifying the issues, finding a range of skilled practitioners to write intelligently and succinctly about those issues, and arranging and presenting the material in a straightforward fashion. . . . The information and advice is consistently sound and reliable, which makes this a text that can be recommended as a solid manual for those responsible for the management of small academic...

Foerstel, himself one of the leaders in the effort to expose the FBI's notorious spies in the stacks' program, writes as a partisan of privacy rights with a well-earned distrust of the FBI's efforts to excuse itself from observing those rights. In fairness to the other side, however, he also gives full play to the arguments of national security and for the prevention of the flow of sensitive' information into foriegn hands. In this extensively documented and thoroughly researched tale, he offers many stories of the courage and fortitude of librarians opposed to this program, from the...

This is a selection of papers from a 1987 conference of the same title. While the emphasis is on academic libraries, we are reminded of the crucial role of public and private libraries. Included are a survey of past research and stimulating ideas for future work, by Phyllis Dain; Wayne Wiegand's look at the role an ideology of reading played in the slow entry of academic libraries into scholarly communication in the 19th century; and a case study by Mary Niles Maack on the impact on African studies of collection inadequacies in U.S. and African libraries. Insightful reading for librarians...

American Music Librarianship is a biographical and historical review of the musical situation in American libraries from its roots in the late 19th century to the 1980s. Beginning with the period from 1854-55 when the Boston Public Library began to buy music for its collections, Bradley tracks the development of the Music Division in the Library of Congress under the guidance of chief librarian Oscar Senneck.

The opening section examines the professional careers of America's first music librarians and the subsequent development of music libraries, taken from information provided in...

Today's research librarian exists within an environment of rapid and unrelenting change. A wide and increasing variety of technological advances are transforming the communication, organization, and storage of information -- and the librarian's traditional function. This work represents the first analytical discussion of the functional role of the research librarian, as well as the relationship between the research librarian, the scholar, and the record of scholarship. Key points include an in-depth, analytical treatment of the future nature of the research library and the future role of...

This book offers a completely new approach to the measurement of academic library effectiveness. Based on a significant empirical investigation, it contradicts established practices such as the measurement of outputs as indicators of effectiveness and the tendency to focus the evaluation of library effectiveness on the success of isolated activities. The book also explores in detail the fundamental inadequacy of library-based bibliographic instruction and information-seeking skills development. It argues that a student learns in order to become information literate and does not become...

Computerized database searching is a common phenomenon in libraries today. Everyone does it, but not everyone does it well, especially when so many options for computerized searching are available. This is not a book about how to search; rather, it is a book about how to integrate computerized database searching into the fabric of library operations. Managers of automated information retrieval services will find practical advice and suggestions for managing an integrated service. Library management will find this book useful for understanding how the various components of automated...

In the decade ahead, libraries will have to do more with less. Fewer journal titles owned by each institution, less detailed cataloging, and fewer staff will become realities as libraries are forced to cope with budget restrictions. Serials management, in particular, will require a greater degree of adaptability and flexibility. This professional reference overviews the most significant emerging issues concerning serials management in academic libraries and provides practical advice to aid librarians in responding to a changing environment. Among the issues discussed are the debate of...

This unique publication provides a thesaurus of all Library of Congress sub-Saharan African subject headings ever published, including classification numbers for most subject headings and cross-references from related or unused versions of a heading. Thus it provides a valuable easy-to-use thesaurus for those doing library research and online searches in African Studies.

The volume covers the 41 countries that make up Africa south of the Sahara and the islands of Cape Verde, the Comoros, Madagascar, Mauritius, Reunion, Saint Helena, Sao Tome Principe, and the Seychelles. It consists of...

Selected papers presented by leading professionals at a Mid-Year Conference of the American Society for Information Science, along with additional commentary by guest editors comprise this volume, which condenses a broad range of information into a cohesive overview of the state of the art of interface design. The current status of human-computer interaction is examined, and major trends identified in an effort to project the future significance of interfaces to information retrieval systems. The need to establish and implement standards for design involving the redefinition of tools and...

This contributed volume offers a summary of the latest ideas and applications concerning decision making software, as applied to administrative decision making and public policy-making. Stuart Nagel, the editor of this work, defines the essence of decision-aiding software to be software that is designed to enable users to process a set of (1) goals to be achieved, (2) alternatives available for achieving them, and (3) relations between goals and alternatives in order to choose the best alternative, combination, allocation, or predictive decision-rule. Containing contributions from both...

This volume is a how-to guide to the use of computers in library-based adult literacy programs. Since the commitment to literacy training has become an integral part of libraries' efforts to offer equal access to information, Linda Main and Char Whitaker provide a comprehensive study of the efficacious role the computer can play in achieving this objective.

The problems and successes associated with the introduction of computers into library literacy programs, as well as financial requirements, space, furniture, training, and the effect on other library operations are central to the...

This is the first booklength study of women in library education. The authors set out to examine the dynamic social processes and significant relationships--such as mentioning--that have shaped the aspirations and career goals of women faculty in library and information science. Employing a intergenerational sample the authors construct a unique view of the changes in opportunities and gender role expectations in the field. In addition, Maack and Passet apply management models of mentoring and support relationships to the university environment. This leads to an analysis of the kinds of...

The future of reference librarianship as a viable and essential part of the library depends on developing a proactive, participatory, and hands-on approach to automation. This book pulls together the most important elements of change likely to influence library information services and explains them clearly. It covers both the conceptual context and practical real-life implementations of current automation in reference services. The automation technologies include OPACs, CD-ROM, international networks, expert systems, natural language processing, and virtual reality.

In addition to...

The techniques of time management explained in this handbook provide a framework from which professional librarians in academic, public, and special libraries can benefit. Included are time management techniques for one's personal work habits, techniques for work routines involving other staff members, and techniques for library administrators. Cochran, a law library administrator focuses on effectiveness (doing the right job) rather than efficiency (doing a job right).

The major topics include setting goals and objectives for one's personal and professional life that support one's...